


another chance

by toast4ghosts



Category: Ghost in the Shell (Anime & Manga)
Genre: F/M, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2045, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG, Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. Solid State Society, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Headcannons Galore, Probably ooc, Self-indulgent fluff, but who knows, if I have to suffer so do you
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-14 21:47:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28677660
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/toast4ghosts/pseuds/toast4ghosts
Summary: Batou and Major Kusanagi finally confront the aftermath of the night they spent together nearly fifteen years earlier.
Relationships: Batou & Kusanagi Motoko, Batou/Kusanagi Motoko
Comments: 4
Kudos: 14





	another chance

**Author's Note:**

> Look, we all know what really happened at the end of "Barrage," but what happened between that and the final episode of that season? Takes place after the cliffhanger of 2045. Probably way too sappy, but I can't see how else these 2 stubborn idiots would get together. Written for my own entertainment.

The bartender at the Mizuki Garden Hotel was getting used to the long-term occupant of the penthouse suite and her prosthetic-eyed friend stopping in for a drink in the evening. Tonight, however, it appeared that the pair was planning to stay for a while. As he delivered their third round, he noted that he’d barely heard a word spoken between the two.

Batou and Major Motoko Kusanagi had conversed since they arrived, but only briefly, and only over the private comm channel they shared. It had been limited so far to the lack of progress they had made earlier in the day trying to track down any leads on Togusa’s location. At one point, a frustrated Batou had smashed a monitor while the squad was assembled in the dive room reviewing the attempts that had, thus far, not yielded any promising results.

The Major assumed he was still blaming himself for not keeping tabs on Togusa that day in Kyoto, but the reality was that the blame lay on Togusa himself – he knew better than to not keep in contact with the squad while on a mission. Personally, she was certain he had gone after Takashi in some misguided heroic attempt to bring the boy home to his mother. But regardless of what the reason for Batou’s outburst, or how long they had been friends, she couldn’t have a team member behaving that way. Especially now that they were working on a government budget again. Since getting drinks a couple of nights a week had become the norm for her and Batou, she decided that would be as good a time as any to talk to him about it.

 _“You were out of control earlier. It’s been a while since I had to talk to you about your temper.”_ said the Major, over the comm.

 _“I’m still pissed about Togusa, can you blame me? The idiot goes off with a posthuman, and makes more work for us, because now we have to find the dumbass. Don’t tell me you’re not angry about it.”_ Batou gripped his beer a bit tighter and scowled as he responded.

 _“I am, and I’m glad to hear that you’re not blaming yourself. I thought you might be.”_ she answered.

Batou grunted in mild annoyance before he replied, “ _Nah, that dummy knows better than to lose contact with his squad mates. Geez, the idiot was even the squad leader while you were gone! I know it was his own damn fault.”_

 _“Good. But you need to blow off some steam outside of work. You can’t go off the rails like earlier again, we’re not mercs in the desert anymore.”_ the Major said firmly.

 _“I spent an hour on the punching bag before I met you here, can’t say it helped much.”_ Batou said with a heavy sigh.

 _“That’s usually your go-to.”_ the Major answered with half a smile.

 _“Yeah,”_ Batou agreed _. “That, and having a having a few drinks. This will help. I’ll get over it.”_

“Hmm.” Kusanagi sighed as she set down her drink, but Batou had know her long enough to hear the quisitive tone to her voice.

 _“What, what is it?”_ he asked, as he signaled the bartender for another round.

 _“Well, what about Ezaki? I heard her in the dive room earlier, she’s persistent.”_ the Major suggested, while staring at the ice in her glass.

 _“Nah, you know that kind of thing’s not for me. And she’s a bit young, don’t you think?”_ Batou replied quickly.

 _“Why not just have some fun with her? It doesn’t have to be anything serious.”_ Kusanagi answered, still avoiding eye contact with her partner by focusing on the full glass of whisky that had just replaced her empty drink.

There was a long pause as Batou contemplated how to respond. After another drink of his beer and a deep sigh, he turned to the Major at last. When he spoke, his voice was lower, and tinged with sadness.

 _“Look,”_ he started slowly. “ _You and I both know there's only one woman for me. If I ever get lucky enough that you decide to give me another chance, I'll be right here waiting. In the meantime, there's no point being in any other relationship, when we both know I'm already in love with someone else.”_

 _“Another chance?”_ she asked slowly, staring intently as tiny bead of sweat formed and rolled down the glass.

 _“Do you really want to talk about this now?”_ Batou asked, and the reluctance to open this particular door any further was obvious in his voice. He already regretted saying as much as he had, as this was a subject they had carefully avoided over the past decade. That unspoken policy had allowed them to continue to work together, and given them the time to become the close friends they were now.

The only response the Major gave was to meet his gaze at last. The look on her face was like nothing he had seen before, and it was enough to spur him on.

 _“Back then, after that…”_ he paused and braced himself, _“night… when you showed up to tell me you weren't dead, I reacted in the worst way possible. I was hurt and angry, and I lashed out at you like a wounded animal. I said horrible things to you.”_ He paused again. “ _What I should have done was told you how goddamn happy I was to see you standing there. I should have grabbed you and given you a thousand kisses and never let go. But I didn't, and I've hated myself for it ever since.”_ Batou sighed deeply again before he finished, _“I understand if you can never forgive me for the way I treated you.”_

 _“I thought I was the one who needed forgiving for what I did to you. For what I put you through.”_ the Major finally answered slowly.

_“It's true that that those two weeks were the worst of my life, to this day. Two weeks in a jail cell thinking you were dead, without any beer or cigarettes, TV, or even a book to read… something, anything, to distract myself from that image of you getting your head blown off, playing in a sickening loop in my head over and over again… It was the worst kind of torture you can imagine. We went from laying in bed, planning our escape to a tropical beach and wasting the days lounging in a hammock together in the sun, to me thinking I’d never hear your voice again.”_

Batou stopped long enough to collect his thoughts before he pushed forward. _“For those two years you left Section 9, I knew you were still alive out there somewhere, so it was okay. I was able to keep going. But when I thought you were dead, that was just the fucking worst. My life was over.”_ He paused and exhaled deeply, and pressed on. _“So, yes, I was angry after that, but I still shouldn't have reacted the way I did. Because, in the end, you were right. Warfare 101, if you want to neutralize an enemy unit, you take out their commanding officer. And as soon as they saw the memories in my head, that I genuinely believed you were dead, that was it, the assault on Section 9 was over.”_

The fact that she was still listening was enough to push him further. These were things he had wanted to say to her for years, and he figured, maybe this was finally the moment he had been waiting for.

_“I made the decision a long time ago, that I would stay by your side, no matter what. Even if you could never feel the same about me as I feel about you. Even if you never gave me another chance. Because I knew I’d never be happy anywhere else. Even if the only thing I can ever be to you is your best friend, this is my place in the world. Next to you.”_

He saw the ghost of a tear trail down her cheek. _“Motoko, are you crying?”_ Batou asked in surprise.

 _“I have no idea what I ever did to deserve your devotion and loyalty.”_ she wondered, as she looked over at her cyborg partner. It had always struck her that he was such a dichotomous man, and it was even more evident now after that speech. He might look like a grizzly bear, and act even more ferocious in combat, but she had always admired that the man underneath that gruff exterior was so surprisingly kind and gentle.

It took the Major a few minutes of further studying her drink before she was able to continue. _“I thought that I’d hurt you so badly that you'd never be able to forgive me. And even after six months had gone by, when the squad was reassembled and everything seemed like it was getting back to normal, and we could go out for a drink again, I still didn't try to talk to you about it. You were so angry… I just assumed that that door was closed forever, and that I'd missed my chance.”_ She looked back at Batou as she finished, _“I thought I’d ruined it.”_

When she couldn’t stand the look of grief on his face any longer, she turned away. It was another long pause before she convinced herself to say the rest of what had remained unsaid between them for too long. _“But what I really wanted was to tell you how heartbroken I was that we didn't make it to the beach back then. Even through all these years, I never tried to talk to you about it. I thought it was too late. Sometimes, back then, you used to try and ask me out, to the movies or somewhere, and I always found a reason to say no. I even told myself that if you ever asked me out like that again, this time I’d say yes. But you never did.”_

 _“I forced myself to stop looking for hints that you might still have feelings for me a long time ago, I knew I’d only drive myself crazy if I didn’t try to let it go. Besides, I was the one who chose to stay with no guarantees.”_ Batou replied, remorse evident in his response. _“You don’t owe me anything,”_ he added.

After a moment, Batou finally asked, _“So, what exactly are we saying to each other here?”_

 _“We’ve both been idiots for a long time?”_ she said. Her anger with herself that her stubborn streak had prevented her from talking to him like this ages ago was tempered with relief that he seemed to still be stuck in the same place she was.

 _“Nah, I’ve got no regrets. I like being able to say you’re my best friend_. _I worked hard for that.”_ He added with a laugh, _“That bartender has been eyeballing us for a while now.”_

 _“Of course he has. Follow me,”_ she said to Batou, as she swung herself off the barstool. “Charge it to the room,” she ordered as she passed the bartender.

Batou followed the Major into the elevator as she punched the button for the top floor. He noticed out of his extended periphery that she seemed to be examining him with that thoughtful gaze of hers, usually reserved for weighing her options before taking action.

The elevator arrived on the top floor, and the Major lead the way into the suite which had been her temporary residence since returning to Japan just a few weeks before.

She wasn’t far into the room before she stopped, and pivoted back around to face Batou. He was only a few steps behind, and she moved to close the gap.

“Right. I think you owe me something.” She had a stern, demanding edge to her voice, which threw him off.

“What do I owe you?” He responded, slightly defensive.

“The way I see it, you still owe me a thousand kisses.”

Before Batou could even react to that, the Major had her arms around his neck, and was kissing him deeply. He responded by wrapping his arms tightly around her, and kissing her back with equal enthusiasm.

When she pulled away at last, he was reluctant to let go. He’d been waiting quite a while for this moment, and it seemed like it was over too quickly. But the smile on her face told him that maybe the moment hadn’t passed.

Before he could think, she turned away from him again and headed toward the other room.

“Motoko?” His confusion at where they now stood evident in his voice.

 _“So, what next?”_ He asked over the comm.

She gestured for him to follow her into the bedroom. _“You still owe me about nine hundred and ninety-nine kisses,”_ she answered with a grin.


End file.
